Effects of <i>MrwetA</i> on Sexual Reproduction and Secondary Metabolism of <i>Monascus ruber</i> M7 Based on Transcriptome Analysis

<i>wetA</i>, one of the conidiation center regulatory genes in many filamentous fungi, plays an important role in promoting asexual spores (conidia) maturation. Our recent research has found that knocking out or overexpressing <i>MrwetA</i> (a homolog of <i>wetA</i>) in <i>Monascus ruber</i> M7 does not affect the development of its asexual spores like other fungi, but both repress the development of its sexual spores (ascospores). However, the mechanism remains unclear. In this study, the function of <i>MrwetA</i> on sexual reproduction and secondary metabolism in <i>M. ruber</i> M7 was confirmed by a complementary experiment. Moreover, the regulatory roles of <i>MrwetA</i> in modulating the expression of genes involved in sexual reproduction, meiosis, and biosynthesis of <i>Monascus</i> pigment and citrinin were analyzed based on the transcriptional data. These results not only contribute to clarifying the regulation of the reproduction and secondary metabolism of <i>Monascus</i> spp., but also to enriching the regulation molecular mechanism of reproduction in filamentous fungi.